Autumn apples are arriving.
Our two small apple trees planted near each other in separate pots which we keep in our back garden near the kitchen window, are again bearing fruits as they have done every year since we got them quite cheaply from a local garden centre. We recommend that if you are buying small apple trees to be planted in pots, get at least two and locate the potted trees near each other. This is to encouraged polination which would result to fruiting.
Autumn Apples
We have found that alternatively each year, one of the trees will normally yield 30 + apples, whilst the other one will struggle with only a few, typically half a dozen?
This could be down to cross pollination by bees, wasps etc., hence having at least two trees, one should always bear a lot of apples annually.
gala apples from our tree and above you can see a small garden spider web weaved around the branches.
Our two potted apple trees, note the furthest tree has only one lonely apple on it’s branch this year.
Our apples are of the Gala variety.
Normally in the UK, October is generally harvest time, apples included. Apple trees in pots need regularly watering in high summer when there is no rain. It is wonderful to watch an apple develop and grow from early summer to autumn. To see if an apple is ripe and ready to pick just before it falls to the ground and could get spoiled, hold the apple in your hand and pull/tug it very lightly and it will detached itself easily from the small branch holding it without much effort.
Our cute & mischievous terrier is always about to pounce upon fallen apples and even those lower ones still attached to the trees 😉
Sometimes we spray the growing apples with soapy water (a very ecological way) to keep off bugs and not make the apple inedible.
The apples are ready for traditional game ‘apple bobbing’ on Halloween. 🙂
There is a superstition regarding a fun game called bobbing for apples. It involves catching one of the floating apples in a big tub of water. Anyway, it is said that the bigger the apple you get, the greater the fortune that would befall you. Nice!
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Did you know?
Gala is Great Britain’s favourite apple! This apple originated in New Zealand.
The gala was named after the Queen (QEII) following her visit to New Zealand.
Apples originally came from the Middle East more than 4,000 years ago.
Apples are high in fibre.
The apples on the above top of the trees ripen first.
An apple is ready to be harvested when you hold it, give it a gentle thug and come away from the tree.
How to keep apples?
Keep them in the fridge or some cold dark place, this way they will stay fresher longer.
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